8 - Bridge Over Troubled Water

When Jon awakened some time later, the sun and the city lights mingled for the distinctive glow of dusk.  They’d both fallen asleep after their-love making, and by the looks of it, had slept all day. 

He had, anyway.  Her side of the bed was empty, so he wasn’t sure when Ariana had gotten up.  Rubbing his head with a yawn, he threw the covers off and reached for the jeans piled on the floor.

Where is she?

The carpet made for silent footsteps as he trekked into the living room in search of her, but Jon found it as empty as the bed.  A gnawing growl in his midsection suggested that it was also empty, so he took a moment to plop down on the couch and pick up the phone to order dinner. 

He hadn’t eaten anything since Petit Soho, and God only knew when she’d last eaten.  They could both use some food to help battle the mental and physical exhaustion wreaked on them both during the last twenty-four hours. 

After placing the receiver down, he padded back toward the bedroom, where the sounds of the shower were now obvious. 

Shower.  Ari. 

It was tempting to join her, but that would only lead to another distraction.  Not that being distracted by her was a bad thing, but they needed to talk first.  That meant the couch was the safest place for him to wait. 

Ariana let the pulsing hot water pound out some of the tension she had at the back of her neck.  She couldn't believe he was there.

What is he doing in Montreal?  Does he know about Lili?

Reaching for her loofa, she began soaping her body.  With every swirl, flashes of last night sparked in her mind – his lips and tongue all over her body, down her neck, into the valley of her breast and across her nipples. 

She trailed her hand over her belly to her hip bone where she let her fingertips brush over the faded intertwined words that now bore teeth marks. 

She had always wanted a tattoo.  Her father promised he’d take her for her eighteenth birthday, but Mamie Lili had put her foot down.  Ariana could still hear her voice, as if she was right there in the room.

"Why would you want someone sticking needles in your skin for no good reason?"

A smile curled her lips as she remembered the day she got it. 

She and Jon had a disagreement about what their relationship meant to each other.  Flowers came from him the very next day, bearing a handwritten “you” and “me” that were joined in a figure eight.  She instantly knew it was the design she wanted to carry for the rest of her life.

She’d called her best friend, Cara, to go with her.  The two of them had been friends since childhood, and Cara was the sister Ariana never had. That’s why she knew about the relationship with Jon. She didn't always agree with it, but she supported Ariana because it meant a lot to her.

"When did you become a fish?" Jon asked, startling her. 

"Sorry!  The hot water felt so good!" She turned the knobs and wrung the water from her hair.

"I'd offer to help towel you off, but dinner is here.  We'd never get around to eating."

"Can you at least hand me a towel?" she asked when stepping out onto the marble floor.

Without hesitation, he picked up one of the hotel’s fluffy bath sheets and wrapped it around her, pausing to kiss a droplet off the tip of her nose.  "Meet you in the living room."

Ariana quickly scrubbed the water from her skin and toweled her hair before walking naked into the bedroom.  The first garment she saw was his shirt on the floor, so she bent to grab.  She pulled it on gradually and stopped with the soft cotton still over her nose. 

His scent was something that she’d never been able to forget, and taking a moment to breathe it in now, Ariana realized she’d missed him more than she thought. 

She came into the dining area of her suite to find dozens of lit candles scattered around the room.  During her shower, the sun had fully set, leaving the soft flicker of flames as the only light.  Soft music played in the background, creating a sense of tranquility that comforted her. 

How did he know this is what I needed?

The two place settings on the table were across from one another, and he held the closest chair, motioning for her to take a seat.  When she did, he went to his side of the table and sat down.

As soon as she inhaled the first whiff of food, Ariana realized that she was ravenous. 

“Hmmm, this smells delicious! I'm so hungry, I could eat a horse.”

“Not just yet Babe,” Jon teased with a devilish smile.

She returned his smile but didn’t meet his eyes.  Her attention was instead captured by two sunflowers lying on the white linen just above her plate.  Their stems were twined together much as Ariana’s legs had been twined around Jon’s while they slept. 

When reaching out to stroke one of the petals, she noticed that there was a small envelope tucked under the flowers.  There was nothing on the front, so she cast a questioning look in Jon’s direction.  His only response was a slight nod of the head, which she took to mean it was for her. 

With him watching on, she opened the flap to find a plain, flat card that she slid out of the envelope.  There was only a single inscription on the cream card stock, and it was one that her stuttering heart recognized before her brain could translate it into words. 

It was a handwritten “you” and “me”, nestled in the lines of a figure eight.  Just like the one he’d sent her all those years ago.    

Love flooded both her eyes and heart.

Blinking away the sheen of moisture, she lifted her head to look across the table at the most beautiful man she knew – inside and out.  There was love and tenderness brimming in the brilliant blue of his eyes, but that wasn’t the only thing.  There were also questions. 

It didn’t take a genius to figure out what he wanted to ask, but Ariana didn’t know if she was up to his interrogation.  He had a tendency to act like a dog with a bone, never letting go until his curiosity was completely satisfied. 

"Thank you, Jonny, for the flowers.  They’re beautiful."

Jon was a little taken aback by her tears.  He hadn’t meant to make her cry.  Rather, he’d hoped something as cheery as sunflowers would bring a smile.  Since that obviously wasn’t the case, he could only assume she was physically drained.

"Baby, please.  Eat something. You're gonna need it later.”  He gave her the smirk she loved while gesturing to her covered plate.

She lifted the silver dome that was keeping the food hot and laughed when seeing what he had ordered for her - Chinese pâté.   It was her favorite and a classic dish from her childhood with ground beef on the bottom, cream corn in the middle and mashed potatoes on top. 

Though something was missing.

When she looked his direction, it was to find him wrinkling his nose and holding out a bottle of ketchup.

"What?" she asked with a quizzical look.

"Oh, nothing.  I just never understood how you can eat that stuff."

"Hey now!  Don't yuck my yum!"

He shook his head and after their laughter faded, the meal progressed in silence.  It wasn’t a good silence, either.  The tension in the air was thicker than all the ice in Antarctica as she waited for him to ask the questions in his eyes, and he waited for… something.

She didn’t know what, but finally Ariana couldn't stand it any longer.  She had to break the silence.

"Why are you in Montreal, Jon?  Don't you have a tour to prepare?" she demanded with a tone somewhere between annoyed and inquisitive.  She was really happy that he was here, but why now?

"As a matter of fact, WE do, but I was feeling restless and shot one of Romey’s dart guns at the wall map in my office.  At first, I thought it was a coincidence that it landed on Montreal.  Now I know better.” Jon put down his fork and reached across the table to pick up her hand.  His thumb drew lazy circles across her knuckles.  “Since I answered your questions, would you answer at least one of mine?"

She tried to withdraw her hand, but he nixed that idea by squeezing a little tighter.  Her stomach flip-flopped.  The dog was ready to sink his teeth into that bone. 

"That depends on what you want to know."

Still not releasing her hand, Jon rose from his chair and knelt beside hers.  He grabbed the nearest chair leg and tugged, turning her seat so that they faced one another, and then picking up her other hand. 

Holding both in his, he gently kissed her fingertips and released a small sigh. 

"Ari, I know about Lili and am deeply sorry. I know what a shock it must have been for you to get that phone call, and you have every reason to be upset.   She was your world.  Your rock. I can’t fathom what I would do if I lost my Mother. That being said, why you would choose to go through this alone? How come you didn't call me?  After all we've been through together, why the hell didn’t you call?”